A beach day in the backyard
by MiraiFutureGirl
Summary: Another one shot in my fluffy Dawsey family one-shots. Sandy, splashy, summer fun- all in the backyard! A teeny bit of tantrum drama, but mostly fluffy.


**NBC owns Chicago Fire. I just wanted a little fluff with the characters I love to make it through the day. Please comment and enjoy! ^_^**

Louie went to a daycare when Gabby was on shift. It had a twenty-four-hour program for first responder families.

She was trying to get a routine started for him, so even on non-shift days, he went for a few hours.

They were very family and parent involvement positive, she would check on him during shift days, and came in on non-shift days, to spend time and play with him.

Louie loved the sand and water tables at the daycare. They were the hardest things to drag him away from.

Gabby had told matt this, and after seeing a few videos online, he'd figured a way to make Louie that happy at home.

The day he finished them co-incited with Louie's day care being called off because the air conditioner was not working.

The caregivers and owners were not wanting to put the kids through staying in that place, it got way too warm for comfort or safety.

Gabby wanted to give Louie some playtime, if she could do so out of the sun, it would be okay

Matt had a look and a certain smile on his face. He was up to something, Gabby knew. What, she was not entirely sure.

"Give me twenty minutes, then come to the back porch in your swimming suits. "

When they made it outside, the center of the backyard was set up like an amusement park made just for Louie.

The sun canopy was new. So was the small blue wading pool with just enough water to cover Louie's little feet.

By the pool were two homemade tables much like the play tables at his daycare. One with sand, the other filled with water.

They were held in frames made of PVC pipe. The sand table frame painted fire engine red, the water table frame painted aqua blue. Two beach chairs for the grown-ups, and a little chair for him.

"Look what Matt made for you," Gabby said animatedly. "He even filled the pool up."

Louie walked over to the sand table. On the grass beside it, there was a small bin, with sand toys. Shovels, a rake, a small sifter. A small bucket, and some molds, starfish, castle, sea turtle, and a crab.

He picked up the shovel and the bucket and began digging in the sand. Gabby joined him, scooping sand into one of the molds.

Matt realized he'd forgotten the toys for the water table.

"I have a few more surprises. I'll be right back"

He walked to the garage, grabbing the water toys he'd bought.

He came back just in time to see Louie dig up a plastic dinosaur, one of the surprises he'd buried beforehand. Louie held it up to Gabby excitedly.

"Look!" He babbled excitedly.

"Dino. Dino!"

"I see the dinosaur. Is it a nice dinosaur?"

To Louie, the nice dinos were the plant eaters- courtesy of Dinosaur Train.

It was a Triceratops, so Louie answered:

"Is a nice dinosaur. Tricey!"

I'm glad you found a nice one. What color is he? Do you remember what that color is, Louie?"

Slightly garbled, he replied:

"Gween"

"Good Job!" Gabby praised

Matt smiled.

"I just remembered, That's not just a sand bin- that's a buried treasure bin." He commented, making it sound like it was a secret.

Louie knew about buried treasure from Jake and the Neverland pirates. 

Gabby did try to limit TV, but - and this was mostly in the morning- it was easier to turn on a cartoon while Louie was waking up, and then she made them breakfast without interruptions.

"Let's see what we can find," she said, handing him the sifter. She scooped sand into it, and Louie shook it.

This revealed, over time- more dinos, plastic sea animals that seemed destined for the water table, a monster truck, a bulldozer, excavator, and a dump truck: small, yet sturdy enough to play in the sand with.

He played with them for a while.

"Play with water, _please_?" he asked, eager for exploring the other toys.

"Yes you can, thank you for asking so nicely," Gabby said.

Louie bounced from one place to another, spending time playing with the sand and water table, and wading in the pool.

The pool held other surprises.

Matt tossed in toys from the bag- soft plastic sea animals, like rubber ducks. They bobbed in the water, ready to be caught by the small handheld net, made to fit Louie's hands.

There were fish and frogs that squirted water, the look on Louie's face when he figured it out was priceless.

He liked watching the water hit the pool. he also enjoyed pouring water out of the small watering can and dumping buckets of water out.

As the day turned to evening, Matt warmed the grill, and Dawson cooked pizzas on it.

The table was set and ready to go, a salad for the grown ups and cut veggies with Greek yogurt dill dip for Louie, and fresh lemonade.

Now came the part Gabby dreaded, for some small part of her knew the tantrum was coming. She remembered the first time he'd played at daycare. He'd pitched a fit when they left.

But she'd read articles and books, trying to do her best to help Louie. And she'd found out, and this was certainly true in Louie's case that a lot of the time, tantrums come from emotions too big for a toddler to handle- anger or fear.

"Louie, playtimes over- it's time to eat."

 _"_ **No** _ **-no-nooo!**_ " He wails, throwing himself onto the grass.

He's close to Gabby, and when he turns his upset onto her, she grabs him in a loose bear hug.

This is in no way meant to hurt him, just stopping that particular action.

He throws his head back, arches his back, and screams. Unable to hit, his feet flail in the air.

"I know you're upset. I know you just want to play. I can't let you hit me. I'm not mad, Louie. It's okay."

Gently, she redirected him by talking about what was going to happen next.

"We have to go eat dinner. It's pizza. I know you really like pizza. After dinner, you can play again."

His tears slowed, and he moved closer, ready to be comforted. She gently rubbed his back as the rest of the tension eased out of him.

The first time Matt had seen Gabby handle Louie mid-tantrum, he'd been worried for them both. Louie's reaction to being re-directed was the same, and it was terrible to see.

He's read the same things Gabby has and has even stopped a tantrum or lashing out using the same method. It works, and there really is no harm done to Louie, no matter how dramatic he acts.

Calmer now, Gabby gets them both up, and Louie takes her hand. They go up to the patio set on the back porch, where dinner is waiting.

Matt follows them.

Louie's pizza is just sauce and cheese. Soon she'll start trying to get him to eat more of a variety, but for now, she's just glad he eats more things then when he first came to live with her.

Hers is white sauce, mushrooms, black olives, ham, and spinach.

Matt's is more traditional, pepperoni, black olive, and mushroom.

As promised, after dinner- and dessert- ice cream for the three of them, Louie gets to play a bit more.

First the pool, then he's asked to pick, sand or water?

Matt dumps out the water bin and pool while he plays in the sand bin.

Then a quick bath- Louie is all-over sandy, and Gabby uses lavender bath soap to soothe him to sleep as part of a routine.

PJ's and Nighttime Pull-up. Then getting tucked into bed with his blanket and Herrmann's monkey, now called Mr. Monks.

She and matt take turns reading one of his favorite books until it's done.

Another hug and kiss from each of them, and lights out, nightlight on- and the door opened a crack. Gabby has a baby monitor in the room, the other part in their room- Louie still wakes in the night, and she needs to hear him if he calls.

Matt and Gabby went to bed soon after. The day had been exhausting- and wonderful.

 **A/N- The homemade table idea was from a youtube video I saw. I thought it was something Matt could build, easy. You can see from the story that Louie still has issues. I know that gabby won't give up. I have a feeling that she would look into how to handle tantrums, and would handle them well, once she found a way that works. Matt would also try his best to be a parent too. I just wanted a little summer fun, but even the best families suffer from toddler drama.**


End file.
